Good morning all-
Can you believe it's December? If only God saw fit to provide a little snow to the Midwest, that would surely get me into the mood for Christmas. Thinking about Christmas always makes me think about hope. What would my life be without it? It would be empty, meaningless and just plain sad. Those that are without hope, die, spiritually and physically. Truly, there is no reason to be here without hope. Why do you think suicide is on the rise in our teenagers here in the US? It's because they have nothing to hold onto in the dark, they are sightless and they believe that their lives mean nothing, when in essence they mean everything to God.
Yesterday, God once again painted the picture of hope and His glory. My son, who sat on the bench last year for varsity and who was demeaned by a coach, played the entire game yesterday. What's the difference? Hope. As we were going to school yesterday, I talked to him about where his hope lies and reminded him that absolutely everything he does comes from the Lord. The talent and desire he has for basketball is a direction from God and that he is to never take it for granted. He's 16 years old and as I said to him, "Let me pray over you before you go into school," he bowed his head and I praised our Lord. I want him to know now that his talent and his future come from the hope of our risen Lord. I don't ever want him to believe that he is the only way. That's destruction for mankind. Has he done everything in his power to get to the place he was yesterday? Absolutely. He totally blew my husband away. But, nevertheless, Christ is in control and what he has today can be gone tomorrow. Talent is fleeting, most MBA stars retire in their 30's. The hope of God to guide us into our future is the most important lesson any person can ever receive. Its the essence of why we were made. God is our hope, our future, our Savior. He is everything and we are just participants in His band.
I know my son heard me because I watched as coaches told him what to do and he responded. I watched as he led people on his team, encouraged them and worked hard to have victory. They didn't win last night but they did become a team. They have a dream, to win and my hope is in the Lord that He will bring these kids together for their school and for each other. Since the beginning of this journey, really since the beginning of watching my son grow into a 6'7" man, I have prayed that he would be God's man, that he would be the light in the dark and that his path would be lit along the way. He is attending one of the roughest schools in our area. This was the last school I or my husband wanted him to attend and yet, he's there with hundreds of kids that need a Savior. My hope is in Jesus and my faith that He can do great things holds true today. My hope remains that my son will be an example and that people will come to Christ because of His faith. Although I love to watch him have success, his true success will be leading others to the God he serves. AMEN!
Truly, the last year has been a faith journey for my entire family. I watched as a man that should have been a role model chose to knock my son to the ground, devastated him and made him feel like a failure. I saw my sons bury their grandfather and me, my dad. And I wondered, "Would there every be joy again?" The answer is yes. My husband and I have grown closer together through the tragedy in my life. We worked to protect our son and prayed about his direction. My oldest son has continued to pray for his brother and I continue to pray for both of them. And the words that you read and this blog were created with the hope that others would read it and that they would see God and someday, my prayer is to be speaking and writing for more and more people throughout the world. My heart has been written on by the King of Glory and I am truly blessed. By hoping in my future and in my families, I have built my faith and without a doubt in my mind, I follow the road of hope so that someday I can sit at the feet of Jesus and ask,"Was the job you gave me well done?" We will see, but for now, I don't have to worry about tomorrow because I have the hope of today.
My prayer for you today is that you will see the hope that God has given us in a rainbow, the sunrise, the moon or maybe even the stars. God created all of this and when you look around you will see the hope he had for mankind. Hope, faith and love, these three but the greatest is love. Hold onto these three words and they will surely set you free. May today find you well and may you be the light to someone today.
Psalm 130:5 NKJV:
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I do hope.
My prayer today:
O, Lord, I come before You so honored to be in Your presence. You are my delight and my reward for being Your child. There are millions of people without hope. They hope in things not of You and in the dark there is no light. I ask You to shine Your light on those that don't believe that Jesus is Lord and Savior. I ask You to provide the love and the hope to Your people so they can spread it across nations. We are a weak people, we disappoint, we waver and we don't deserve to be at Your feet. But You know this about us and You love us anyway. Our hope must come from You and we come before You now asking for the Lord we serve to light a path around the world, where every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that You are Lord. We worship You today, not just in words but in actions and we ask that You would hold us upright as we speak about You. Forgive us for our sins and take away any bitterness in our hearts, for we want to be servants unto You, speaking of Your hope, Your love and Your mercy. In all things we give You thanks and honor. Guide Your women to unite all over the world and give them the power to minister to the masses. Hold up our men, give them strength and courage so that they can guide the world. We love You Lord, we bow down to You and we thank You for every blessing You have bestowed on our lives. I am honored and so are the thousands of women You call daughters to be in Your house, to be in Your fields and for being a part of the great commission. With all that I am and all that I will ever be, I owe You my life. In Jesus name, AMEN.
Until tomorrow...
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